Wilhelmsen Ships Service reports that it has been selected to join a Singaporean government project to develop the future Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) regulatory framework for the city-state, and will receive dedicated funding for its proposed shore-to-ship delivery system as part of the programme.

Kongsberg has agreed a £500 million deal to acquire Rolls-Royce Commercial Marine, buying the marine products, systems and aftermarket services operations put up for sale by Rolls-Royce after the UK company conducted a strategic review of its business at the beginning of the year and decided to narrow its focus to concentrate on the aerospace, defence and power systems markets.

UK-based start-up CargoMate, developer of a port call optimisation platform for container ships, reports that it has raised £500,000 through a seed investment round to continue development of the technology.

Maritime software company NAPA, owned by ClassNK, reports that it has received funding from INTENS, a VTT-coordinated Finnish research-industry collaborative consortium, to support its work improving vessel technical and operational performance and lowering ships’ emissions.

Lloyd’s Register Foundation (LRF) and Blockchain Labs for Open Collaboration (BLOC) have announced a funding partnership to set up Maritime Blockchain Labs (MBL), a new research initiative to explore the potential application of blockchain technologies in the global maritime industry.

The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) is set to launch a new Maritime Transformation Programme (MTP) and Singapore Maritime Data Hub (SG-MDH), as part of its efforts to build a support ecosystem for innovation and R&D in the port city.

SKY Perfect JSAT Corporation (SJC) has agreed to invest $4.5 million in its maritime broadband partner KVH, as part of a broader commitment to collaborate on value-added services in the area of shipping digitalisation and improved internet access at sea.

France-based shipping company Bourbon has unveiled a new strategic action plan it is calling #BOURBONINMOTION, including a focus on “capitalising on the digital revolution to better differentiate by connecting the fleet” which will see the company dispose of vessels unable to be upgraded as “smart ships.”

A £1.8 million Vessel Technology Assessment System (VTAS) project has been established in the UK, which aims to quantify the financial benefits of investing in fuel efficient technologies for existing and future vessels to assist in accelerating their deployment across the maritime industry.

BMT is set to lead a new £1.2 million research project funded by Innovate UK, the UK’s innovation agency, to address the challenge of how traditional manned vessels can co-exist with autonomous systems in shared water space.